


Artist's Lament

by honeyLav



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Gen, Kitagawa Yusuke & Sakura Futaba Friendship, One Shot, Post-Canon, Post-Persona 5, Recovery, Self-Harm, Suicide Attempt, also the protagonist's name is akira here i just think it's kind of neat, also this takes place after the events of normal persona 5 not persona 5 royal, they are so important, this is my first time writing angst i hope it doesn't suck, which is why kasumi isn't there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:00:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24342430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honeyLav/pseuds/honeyLav
Summary: Yusuke calls Futaba late at night, seeking comfort. He goes over for a visit, and gets out something he's been trying to vent about for a long time.
Relationships: Kitagawa Yusuke & Sakura Futaba
Kudos: 30





	Artist's Lament

**Author's Note:**

> if you didn't see the tags, this fanfiction has self harm and mentions of suicide attempts. please proceed with caution if you are in any way triggered or made uncomfortable with these topics.

"Futaba?"

"Oh, 'sup, Inari? What did you need me for?"

"I'm truly sorry for calling you so late, but... would I be able to come over for some time? I must... talk to you about something that has been bothering me."

"Of coursei! I'll pay for your train ticket back, 'mkay?"

"You have my thanks, Futaba. I'll see you soon."

"You too!"

Yusuke took his phone out of his pocket and quickly sent a short "I'm here" text to Futaba once he arrived at her house. She almost immediately saw the message and opened the door for him.

"Inari!!" Futaba caught him in a big hug. "Come on, let's get in before Dad sees us!"

The two scurried into Futaba's room, and Yusuke sat down on the floor in front of Futaba's bed.

"Oh, come ON, Inari! You can sit on the bed. I want you to be comfy." Futaba took a seat in front of her computers, and spun her chair around to face Yusuke.

"Thank you... Futaba..." After taking a seat on the edge of the bed, Yusuke's voice started shaking as he squeezed his eyes shut.

"Hey." Futaba pointed at Yusuke. "Look at me. Please tell me what's wrong."

Yusuke sighed and covered his eyes with his hand. "Things haven't been the same since Akira left. I've been thinking about Sens- I mean, Madarame, even more for some reason. It's getting far more difficult for me without him here. He truly inspired me, and I really... miss him..."

A single tear fell from Yusuke's left eye. As he was about to wipe it with his hand, Futaba got up from her chair, lightly swatted his hand away from his eye, and wiped it herself with a tissue. She sat next to him and showed him a small smile. "Let it all out, Inari."

"I still talk to him but it just... isn't the same... He was the one who helped me get out of my slump and get over Madarame, but I can't keep..." Yusuke rested his head on Futaba's shoulder to cry harder for a moment, letting out sorrowful sobs. Futaba placed a hand on his chest and rubbed his shoulder once she noticed that his breathing was very rushed and heavy.

"Do you need water or anything, Inari?" Futaba spoke quietly as she wiped some more of tears away with another tissue.

"No thank you... Please, just... stay here with me..." Yusuke found much comfort in Futaba's warmth, and he continued talking. "Lately I've been having... horrible flashbacks to my time with Madarame... and Akira always used to be there for me when I needed to talk to him..."

"I get how you feel. Akira was a huge help to me when he was here to make me feel better about fitting into society and not being shut in all the time. He both helped us with so much, and I know how hard it was to have to take him back to his hometown. I want you to be happy that we can still talk to him! Isn't that right?" Futaba fixed her glasses, and she saw Yusuke nod, his head still on her shoulder.

"I do understand that... I find much comfort in speaking to him and Morgana over the phone... I miss going on our missions and going to Mementos and all of the other things we did, but it simply feels like a dream, and that had never happened..." Yusuke let out another deep sigh.

"Oh, Inari... They did all happen! You have these new friends and you're becoming a brand new you. I'm super proud of how far you've come in such a short bit of time. For real." Futaba explained. "Getting over trauma is... really hard for a lot of people. I'm still not over my mother..." She looked down, and noticed she had started crying as well. She ignored her tears though, and continued to talk. "You're really strong, Inari. I know you can heal. And I want to help you." She perked up, to Yusuke's shock. "I bet the others will totally want to help! Ryuji, Ann, Makoto, Haru... I'm sure they wouldn't want to see you like this ever again. We should make plans for us to all go to Shibuya or somewhere fun!"

"I hope I have enough energy for that in the near future... I've been far too drained to even start any new paintings lately. I've been lacking inspiration and it's quite discouraging. I truly wish to get out of this slump again, but it's been nearly impossible without anyone's help..." Yusuke paused for a moment to grab a tissue to stop the incoming torrent of tears. "I've had no one to comfort me ever since Akira had to go back... This is the first time I've actually said anything about it to anyone... I've been holding it all in because I didn't want to feel as if I was a burden to any of you. I've been through being a burden so many times in my life, and I never want to run the risk of it ever again in my life... It has come to the point where I had almost..." He broke down in tears before he could finish, head buried in his hands now.

Futaba was in shock. She had never heard anything like this from Yusuke in the past. It shook her to her core, and she began crying harder. Through quiet gasps, she whispered, "I'm so sorry..."

"I have... scars that are healing still... and it's so hard to look at them... because it reminds me of him..." Yusuke squeezed his eyes shut once more, and rolled up his sleeve, revealing small scars on his upper arm. Futaba grabbed his arm, and placed it on her lap.

"Yusuke... I'm so sorry you've had to deal with this... You deserved so much better... and I'm so glad... you're..." Futaba took a few breaths, but couldn't stop her tears from flowing nonetheless. "I'm so glad you didn't hurt yourself... because you would have... never seen your life get... as good as it has been... ever since you met the others..." She paused again, and gave Yusuke a tight hug. "I'm so glad you're here... and I'm so grateful that we've met."

Yusuke looked at Futaba, and rolled his sleeve back down. "Futaba, I..." He put his hand back on her shoulder. "I'm so glad that we met as well. Please... I know this is a large request, but... I am depending on you to help me heal. You are one of my closest friends, and I would never let you go... Thank you for your help tonight." He was struggling to talk, since he was crying even more after seeing his friend and the pure sorrow she was feeling. "I believe I should be going now... It's getting quite late..." He sighed and stood up, but Futaba immediately pulled him back down to sit next to her.

"I want you to stay here." Futaba's voice was no longer shaky, and she spoke in a very serious tone. "Please. I want you to stay as long as you're still healing. I want to help you. Please stay." Yusuke could hear the desperation in her voice, and he knew that she truly did want him to stay. She continued on, still tugging on his arm. "I'll find a way for you to meet Akira again soon. I'll help you get together with me and the others. I'll give you clothes to wear and food to eat. I'll try my best to help you heal..." She started crying again, as Yusuke began to sit back down.

"Thank you for the offer, Futaba. I will be accepting your help." Yusuke looked into Futaba's eyes, and smiled through his drying tears. Her eyes lit up, and she hugged Yusuke once more.

"I'm so glad, Inari. Thank you so much..." Futaba stood up and peeked around in her closet. "Now, let's get you somewhere to sleep for the night, and some clothes for tomorrow!"

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading! this is my very first attempt at writing angst and i accidentally tied too much of my past into this oops but i really hope you enjoyed this fic aaaaaaagh


End file.
